Moondog: What does "female fashion" really mean?

I recently went to see the movie The Beach Bum in theaters. It just so happened that the director, Harmony Korine, was in attendance. Before the movie started he shyly and awkwardly thanked the audience of 20 for coming out to see his film and he hoped we all enjoyed. An interesting greeting for a interesting movie to say the least.

The Beach Bum tells the tale of Moondog, an over the top rich poet. His nomadic lifestyle is filled with drugs, sex,  and recklessness. Due to Moondog's eclectic and eccentric lifestyle, his outfit choices reflect his behavior accordingly.

After writing most of my blog posts on traditional, societally excepted female fashion choices, I decided that this movie was the perfect opportunity to branch out from this box.

Moondog's fashion choices throughout the movie represent him as a free spirit. He wears what he pleases. Most of what he wears happens to be traditionally "female" clothes. Dresses, one piece bathing-suits, and pink bathrobes with fur.

This got me thinking about how much "gender roles" influence our perception of someone. Just because Moondog identifies as a male, he gets judged and looked at for wearing traditionally female clothes. Though these choices in the movie were more for laughs, The Beach Bum shares a message of challenging the status quo, creating gender diversity, embracing gender queerness.

Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor is one of the top style icons in film. From her famous purple eyes to her unmatched sex appeal, Liz Taylor topped the charts for fashion inspiration. Upon doing more research about her and her impact on the fashion and film community, I came across her Wikipedia page. There is a whole section dedicated to her style and jewelry legacy. It originally read like this:

Taylor is considered a fashion icon both for her film costumes and personal style.^[87][88][89] At MGM, her costumes were mostly designed by Helen Rose and Edith Head,^[90] and in the 1960s by Irene Sharaff.^[88][91] Her most famous costumes include a white ball gown in A Place in the Sun (1951), a Grecian dress in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), and a slip and a fur coat in BUtterfield 8 (1960).^[87][88][89] Her make-up look in Cleopatra (1963) started a trend for "cat-eye" make-up done with black eyeliner.^{[5]:135–136}

Though it doesn't seem like anything is amiss, there was one costume missing from her most iconic looks. When you Google "Liz Taylor famous dress," one of the first results is her iconic green A-line dress from the film Suddenly Last Summer. There are countless recreations of her classic green look; so many people associate a green dress with Liz Taylor. I edited the Wikipedia page to reflect this new information.

^{Taylor is considered a fashion icon both for her film costumes and personal style.[87][88][89] At MGM, her costumes were mostly designed by Helen Rose and Edith Head,[90] and in the 1960s by Irene Sharaff.[88][91] Her most famous costumes include a white ball gown in A Place in the Sun (1951), a Grecian dress in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), a green A-line dress in "Suddenly Last Summer"(1959), and a slip and a fur coat in BUtterfield 8 (1960).[87][88][89] Her make-up look in Cleopatra(1963) started a trend for "cat-eye" make-up done with black eyeliner.[5]:135–136}

This new addition to the Wikipedia page allows for further reading and information about Elizabeth Taylor's classic looks. Her iconic green dress is commonly seen on posters of her and even used as her headshot. Hopefully this addition attracts and excited Liz Taylor fans.

RomCom Costumes are the Best

The leading ladies in RomCom movies are always dressed impeccably. In this genre of film the starlets wear the most stylish dresses, suits, skirts, and everything in between. Not only do these fashion choices inspire viewers' own outfits, but also inspire women to put their best foot forward (and a cute outfit never hurt anyone).

In the movie What A Girl Wants starring Amanda Bynes, costume designer Shay Cunliffe made sure audiences understood that being true to ones self is the most important thing in life. Cunliffe dressed Amanda Bynes in rock and roll chic, a stark juxtaposition to the movie's antagonist  Christa Cole who was dressed in prim and proper suits. Audiences see how Bynes character perseveres, stays true to herself, and maintains her sense of self (and her style).

The same applies for Jennifer Garners' character in 13 Going on 30. Designer Susie DeSanto kept Garners' character in innocent and youthful clothing, highlighting her good nature and spritely spirit. While other characters dress in black, leather, and lace, Garners' character sticks to florals, cottons, and bright colors. By the end of the movie, Garners' character saves the company and teaches her peers the value in kindness, all the while looking fabulous.

RomCom movies can be heartwarming, tender, and inspiring. The leading ladies in these films dress to impress. They motivate their viewers to stay true to their self and their style.